Dangerous Doses - Katherine Eban

Dangerous Doses is an alarming story to say the least. I read this book at the request of a colleague and am now wondering about the entire industry America depends on for their health. Wow.

Unknown to the majority of the American public, prescription pharmaceuticals are passed through many, many, hands on the way to the local pharmacies. There's the bohemeth pharmaceutical companies who sell to hundreds of wholesalers, then the wholesalers sell it to either other wholesalers, pharmacies, or hospitals. The problem enters when the wholesalers are not regulated by much more than a statement of integrity and the remote possibility of a $250 fine if things go afoul. That's where Dangerous Doses comes in.

Through a set of wonderfully written stories (all true) and characters (all real), Eban artfully portrays what was happening in Southern Florida's wholesale pharmaceutical market. Be forewarned - it will shock you. A team of investigators who dubbed themselves the "Horsemen of the Apocalypse" and a handful of determined prosecuters take on the thousands of self-made crooked millionares selling pharmamceuticals out of anything from the trunks of their cars to elaborate inter-state multi billion-dollar distribution networks. In the end, their successes, and failures, made it all the way to Washington, D.C. and influenced the passing of new legislation regulating the industry. A success story.

I recommend this read to anyone who has an interest in where the medications they ingest come from. One may be quite suprised.